This was where the two rail lines, the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, met to finally complete the transcontinental railroad in the United States in May 1869. The completion of this project changed our nation in many ways--providing faster, easier routes to the west, carrying supplies back and forth across the country, modernizing the frontier's way of life, etc. It was an exciting time in US history.
Kyle is standing next to a replica of the Golden Spike. There were two originals that were used on the day the railroad was completed. One disappeared and the other is at the Stanford University campus in California. The kids were interested in learning about the railroad for about 3.5 seconds and then they resorted to this....
Actually, they were very well-behaved when we toured the storage garage where the replicas of the train engines are held. Our jaws dropped as we entered the building and saw the engines, named Jupiter and No. 119. What beautiful, magnificent machines! The park ranger gave a very informative tour and allowed us to ask questions. The kids (especially Kyle) were very astute and asked some really great, meaningful questions. I loved seeing them be so inquisitive and observant.
My favorite bit of information we learned was about the men who worked to build these rail lines from Sacramento to Omaha. They were fiercely competitive and industrious--and they were thoroughly enjoying their paychecks from the government to build the rail lines. In fact, they were so driven by the project and the income it produced, they actually continued to build the rail lines past and parallel to each other until the government finally stepped in to establish a final meeting point and order them to end the project. Hey, if the money's comin'......
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